Category: History Essay Examples
See our collection of history essay examples. These example essays are to help you understanding how to write a history essay. History is a fascinating puzzle with both personal and cultural significance. The past informs our lives, ideas, and expectations. Historians study the past to figure out what happened and how specific events and cultural developments affected individuals and societies. Also, see our list of history essay topics to find the one that interests you.
Founded at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, in July 1944 by representatives of 44 governments, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), commonly known as the World Bank, was conceived as a mechanism through which financial resources could be funneled to Europe to aid in the rebuilding effort …
The United States of America and, in fact, the world, would not be the same after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. The term 9/11 was added to the U.S. vocabulary, symbolizing armed aggression holding humankind for ransom. American …
Yahya Khan was the president of Pakistan and chief of army staff from 1969 to 1971, following the resignation of Mohammad Ayub Khan. As soon as he rose to power, Yahya Khan declared martial law to quell the widespread riots caused by discontent in the aftermath of the …
Boris Yeltsin was the first president of Russia following the collapse of the communist Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). Yeltsin struggled against the vestiges of the former regime and the chaos following its collapse to introduce a stable, democratic system. Yeltsin was born in the region of …
The Arab Republic of Yemen is located on the southern part of the Arabian Peninsula, sharing borders with Saudi Arabia and Oman. Three-quarters of its population in 2004 lived in rural areas, and its topography ranges from coastal plains to highlands to desert. The British occupation and colonization …
Yoshida Shigeru was both a diplomat and a politician; he served as prime minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954. Yoshida led Japan through much of the U.S. occupation of Japan. His leadership ultimately allowed Japan to emerge from the economic, psychological, and …
The wars that attended the breakup of Yugoslavia during the 1990s tend to be explained by indicating some historical predisposition of Balkan nationalities toward violence against one another. Although the legacy of the past did play a role in the conflict, it did not determine the bloodshed. In …
In the heavily Mayan Indian state of Chiapas in southeastern Mexico, on New Year’s Day, 1994, a group of rebels carrying automatic rifles, axes, and sledgehammers, wearing black ski masks, and calling themselves the Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) proclaimed themselves in rebellion against the Mexican government. The …
Zhou Enlai came from a gentry family, studied in Tianjin (Tientsin), and participated in the student movement before sailing for France in 1920. He was a founding member of the Chinese Communist Youth Corps in France, in charge of political indoctrination. He also joined the Nationalist Party (or …
Khaleda Zia became the prime minister of Bangladesh for the third time in October 2001 for a five-year term. She was born on August 15, 1945, in Jalpaiguri (now in Bengal, India), the third of her parents’ five children. Zia had her early school education at Dinajpur Government …
Mohammad Zia-ul-Haq was president of Pakistan for more than a decade from 1977, when he overthrew the government of Zulfikar Bhutto, to 1988, the year of his death in a plane crash. As the president of Pakistan, in 1978, Zia established a totalitarian and dictatorial regime based on …
Born into a prosperous Illinois family, Jane Addams forged important new roles for women in education and social work. As founder of Chicago’s Hull-House, she helped revolutionize social services for the poor and immigrants. Her work for peace as the United States marched into World War I antagonized …
The first half of the 20th century represented a consolidation of white-dominated rule in South Africa. Yet the century began with a conflict between the British colony and the Afrikaner, or Boer, republics. Afrikaners, who claimed their lineage from the original Dutch settlers of the Cape colony, had …
Aga Khan, the title ascribed to the imam of the Nizari Ismaili community, was first bestowed on Aga Hasan Shah by Fateh Ali, the Shah of Persia, in 1818. The Ismaili branch of Islam is the second-largest Shi’i community after the Twelvers. The Ismailis and Twelvers both accept …
Emilio Aguinaldo was a revolutionary independence leader, general, statesman, and the first president of the Philippines according to many Filipinos. He played a major role in the Philippine revolution against Spain and in the Philippine-American War. Aguinaldo’s rise to notability happened early in his life. He was born …
Arturo Fortunato Alessandri Palma was president of Chile from 1920 to 1924, again in 1925, and then from 1932 to 1938. During that time he became known as the Lion of Tarapacá. Known initially for his strident support of the poor of Chile, he was later heavily criticized …
Algeria remained part of the French Empire throughout the first half of the 20th century, but nationalist movements for independence became increasingly more vocal and determined. Several hundred thousand Algerians fought or worked for the French military during World War I. After the war they expected reforms and …
Alliances are a common military or political action among states. Often resorted to for defensive purposes, they frequently result in the very war they hoped to avoid. When Sparta formed the Peloponnesian League and Athens led the Delian League in the aftermath of the Persian War, war followed, …
The All-India Muslim League (AIML) was established on December 30, 1906, at the time of British colonial rule to protect the interests of Muslims. Later it became the main vehicle through which the demand for a separate homeland for the Muslims was put forth. The Indian National Congress …
Dr. Bhim Rao Ambedkar was the most important leader of the oppressed untouchable minority in the history of India. He acquired the honorific name Babasaheb. Fighting for his people, he angered Mohandas K. Gandhi, the revered leader of the Indian nationalist movement, as well as many Hindu traditionalists. …
